Urinal



De- 10, 1957 N. H. FRIEDMAN ErIAL '2,815,511

URINAL Filed May 4, 1955 United States Patent O 2,815,511 URINAL NathanH. Friedman, Stratford, and Walter Andruschkevich, Bridgeport, Conn.

Application May 4, 1955, Serial No. 505,926 3 Claims. (Cl. 4-110) Thepresent invention relates to urinals in general, and to deformable .andself-recoverable urinals in particular.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a urinal of a typewhich is ordinarily rigid and may be handled like conventional urinals,yet may temporarily be deformed to accommodate users even in positionsmost awkward for the purpose.

`It is another object of the present invention to provide a urinal ofthe aforementioned type which is made of flexible material and has itswalls coordinated to form a partially collapsible but self-recoverablereceptacle of a definite volume, and a projecting tubular spout whichmay be bent in all directions, thereby to permit, if necessary,convenient and safe application of the urinal in something likesqueeze-on fashion to some part or parts yof an immobilized person injust about any sleeping or supine position.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a urinal ofthe aforementioned type which has provisions for lits ready conversionfrom most convenient and sanitary male use to rnost convenient andsanitary female use, and vice versa.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a urinal of theaforementioned type having a plurality of surfaces for selective andmost convenient use of either as a rstand-on bottom surface in theapplication of the urinal to supine patients in most any immobilized orenforced position of the patients, or for safe placement of the urinalwith any one of these surfaces on a support without spilling thecontents thereof.

A further o'bject of the present invention is the provision of a urinal`of the aforementioned type having an adjustable dimension s-o as toaccommodate the latter to the physical differences of differentpatients.

It is another object `of the present invention to provide a urinal ofthe aforementioned type which lends itself to efficient mass productionat remarkably low cost, by being molded in one piece from suitableplastic or plastic-like material.

It is -a further object of the present invention to provide a urinal ofthe aforementioned type which may ibe molded from transparent for atleast translucent plastic or plastic-like material, thereby to permitinspection of the urine therein as to its characteristics as well asquantity, for medical purposes.

AOther objects and advantages will ,appear to those skilled in the artfrom the following, considered in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

`In the accompanying drawings, in which certain modes of carrying outthe present invention are shown for illustrative purposes:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a urinal pursuant to the presentinvention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view, partly in elevation, of thesame urinal;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal :sectional view, partly in elevation, of amodified urinal;

Fig. 4 is a frag-mentary perspective view of a urinal embodying thepresent invention in a modified manner;

Fig. 5 is an end View taken in the direction of the arrow 5 in Fig. 4,and showing the spout of the urinal converted for female use;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary side view of the spout end of I lCC a urinalembodying a further modification of the maleto-female conversionarrangement;

Fig. 7 is a view taken in the direction of the arrow 7 in Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary side view of the spout end of a urinal embodyingstill another modification of the maleto-fernale conversion arrangement;and

Fig. 9 is another side view of the spout end of the same urinal shown inFig. 8.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2thereof, there is shown a urinal 10 pursuant to the present invention.Said urinal comprises a hollow body or receptacle 12 ha-ving anelongated hollow spout or funnel 14 extending therefrom. The spout ispreferably integral with the body, the urinal being formed of a flexibleself-restoring plastic, such as, for example and not lby away oflimitation, polyethylene. -In making the urinal of such or similarplastic, the same is virtually unbreakable under ordinary accidentalconditions, and has the further advantage of never feeling cold, to theuser.

Pursuant to a feature of the 4present invention, the body 12 isprovi-ded with a plurality -of stand-on supporting surfaces whereby theurinal may be positioned in .any one of a plurality of ydifferentdispositions thereof. In this connection, the body 12 is defined by theopposing planar end walls 16 and 18 which are interconnected iby thefour planar lside walls 20, 22, 24 and 26, respectively. Said side wallspreferably taper from the end wall 18 toward the end wall 16.

It will be Vunderstood that the urinal may be positioned or ldisposedt-o stand on any of the side wall surfaces 20, 24 and 26 thereof for useby a supine patient, and that the end wall 16 also provides a convenientstand-on surface after the urinal has been used and removed from thepatient. tIn this connection it will be noted that the polyethylene,used to for-rn the urinal, is light-permeable and the .side Wal-l 20 maybe provi-ded with indicia or graduations 28 thereon (Fig. 2) so as tomeasure the contents when the urinal is stood on its end wall 16. Thepolyethylene is -irradiated by an electron beam generator so that theurinal can withstand the elevated temperatures Iof a sterilizing devicewithout .any change in its shape or flexibility. The irradiatedpolyethylene is also radiolucent so that, if necessary, a patients torsocan be X-rayed without removing the urinal.

Pursuant to another feature 'of the present invention, the urinal isreadily usable by patients who differ in physical Icharacteristics Iorbodily dimensions. In this `connection, it will =be noted from Fig. lthat the juncture 30 of the spout 14 and the urinal end wall 18 isdisposed offcenter with respect to the latter. Consequently, the urinalmay be adjusted to any one of two different spout heights above theseveral urinal stand-on surfaces. More specifically, it will tbe notedthat the juncture 30 is closest to the walls 20 and 24 and fartherspaced from the wall 26. Consequently, in order to obtain a maximumheight of the mouth 32 of spout 14 above a stand-on wall of the urinal,the latter is adjusted `so that the wall 26 is used as the bottom orstand-on wall, .as in Figs. 1 and 2. To reduce the height of mouth 32,the urinal is ad justed to lie on Veither of its walls 20 .and 24.

Pursuant to another feature of the present invention, a maximum degreeof bendability or flexibility is provided for `the spout 14 without,however, appreciably deforming the cross-sectional contour orconfiguration thereof. In this connection it will be noted that thespout 14 is frusto-conical in configuration, as best seen in Figs. 1 andA2. The maximum diameter of the spout occurs at its `open .mouth 32 andthe minimum diameter thereof occurs at its juncture 30 with the body 12.Consequently, the spout is readily bendable at said juncture,

as indicated, for example, in the dot-and-dash line position thereof inFig. 2.

The ready bendability of the spout 14, combined with the ready partialcompressibility or collapsibility of the body 12, permits the entireurinal safely to be squeezed and turned into numerous differentpositions partially beneath or between parts of sleeping or supinepersons, especially patients who are immobilized due to paralysis,ankylosis, arthritis, etc. Thus the ready bendability of the spout 14and ready partial collapsibility of the body or receptacle 12 form animportant aspect of the present invention, since this permits thedescribed safe and reliable squeeze-in application of the urinal to asupine person. For this reason, the present urinal adapts itself to aperson even in the most awkward position for the purpose rather thanrequires the person to adapt himself or herself to the urinal asheretofore.

For increased and better controlled bend'ability of the urinals spout,the same may be of the ribbed configuration indicated at 34 in Fig. 3.Also, a cover 36 may be provided for the mouth 32 of the urinals spout(Fig. 2) so as to prevent spilling of the urinals contents as well asentrap the odors therein. The cover 36 may be fairly rigid and snappedon and off the mouth end of the urinals spout.

Pursuant to another aspect of the present invention, the urinal may beused by both male and female patients. Since the mouth 32 is circular,it is readily adapted to receive a male genital for use by a maleperson. In order to convert the urinal for female use, the mouth 32 iselongated into substantially oval or elliptical configuration, asillustrated in Fig-5, so as to accommodate the female vulva.

Fig. 4 illustrates the presently preferred means to provide theconversion of the urinal from male to female use. In the presentembodiment, a flattened or elliptical ring or clamp 44 is provided onthe spout 14. The ring is formed of suitable material having a greaterdegree of rigidity than that of the exibile spout 14. For example, thering may be formed of metal or of a plastic which is more rigid than theplastic material of which the urinal is formed. The ring is dimensionedso that the distance between the opposite sides 46-46 exceeds theminimum diameter of the frusto-conical spout but is less than themaximum diameter thereof. Consequently when the ring is disposed at thejuncture 30, as shown in full lines in Fig. 4, it applies no clampingpressure to the spout and the latter is available for male use. However,when the slidable ring is slid to a position adiacent the mouth 32, asshown in dot-and-dashlines in Fig. 4, the ring applies a clampingpressure to the spout to compress the opposite surfaces thereof so as toelongate the mouth into an oval or elliptical configuration, as shown at32A in Fig. 5. In order to prevent the deformation of the month fromsaid oval configuration, a thickened lip 48 is preferably provided atthe mouth. Said oval configuration adapts the mouth of the spout toaccommodate the female vulva. When the ring is moved back to theinoperative position thereof, as illustrated in full lines in Fig. 4,the self-restoring spout returns to its circular configuration. Whilethe ring 44 is in Fig. 4 shown slidably arranged on the exemplarysmooth-walled frusta-conical spout 14, the same may be arranged on theperipherally ribbed spout 14 of the urinal shown in Fig. 3, with thefurther advantage that the ribs 34 near the mouth of the spout willreleasably lock the ring against sliding back on the spout when theurinal is used by a female.

Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate a modified spout-clamping means 50. As hereshown, the clamping means 50 comprises a cover or plug S2 for the mouth32 of the urinals spout, of which the cover is provided with asubstantially U-shaped clamp 54. The cover may be formed of a suitablematerial, for example and not by way of limitation, plastic or rubberwhich is more rigid than the material of which the urinal is fabricated.The cover or plug 52 may be like the snap-on cover 36 in Fig. 2. Theclamp 54 may be formed of rigid plastic or metal with one arm 58suitably secured on the cover 52. The other arm 60 extends from thecover and serves as a hand-grip or carrier for readily carrying theurinal when the cover is attached to and closes the mouth of the urinalsspout.

The clamping device 50 carried by the spout is readily removed from thelatter, whereupon the urinal is available for male use. To convert thespout for female use, the clamp 54 is engaged on the spout below the lip48 as best illustrated in Fig. 6, to elongate the mouth 32 to the ovalconfiguration thereof, illustrated in Fig. 7, to adapt the spout forfemale use. Upon removal of the clamp 54, the compressed spout returnsto its circular configuration.

Figs. 8 and 9 illustrate a further modification of the clamping means.As here shown provision is made for a substantially U-shaped clamp 62having a finger 64 which is pivotally mounted on the yoke 66, providedon the spout 14, as by the pivot pin 68. The clamp 62 is formed ofsuitable material, for example and not by way of illustration, rigidplastic or metal. The clamp is illustrated in the inoperative positionthereof in Fig. 9 and in full lines in Fig. 8. From said position, theclamp may be rotated counterclockwise, viewing Fig. 8, to the brokenline position 62A thereof in which it compresses kthe spout below thelip 48 to elongate the mouth 32 and thereby convert the urinal forfemale use. Upon return of the clamp to its full line position, thespout is selfrestored for male use. The clamp may also be pivoted in aclockwise direction to the broken line position 62B thereof. In saidposition the clamp may be used as a hand-grip or carrier for the urinal.

While We have shown and described the preferred embodiment of ourinvention, it will be understood that various changes may be made in thepresent invention without departing from the underlying idea orprinciples of the invention within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A urinal for use by both males and females, said urinal comprising aclosed hollow body, and an elongated tube-like spout extending therefromand terminating in a normally substantially circular mouth toaccommodate a male genital, said spout being substantially frustoconicalwith the minimum diameter substantially at its juncture with said bodyand the maximum diameter at said mouth, said spout being formed of atiexible selfrestoring material so that the confronting inner surfacesthereof move together under external pressure `and return to theiroriginal condition upon release of the pressure, and a clamping memberslidably mounted on said spout, said member being dimensioned to releasethe pressure from said spout when at said junction and being operable,when slid to a position adjacent said mouth, to compress the spout so asto elongate the mouth thereof into a substantially oval configuration,whereby to accommodate a female vulva.

2. A urinal, as defined in claim 1, further characterized in that theclamping member is an o-blong ring, the distance between the nearestopposing sides of said ring being greater than. said minimum diameterand smaller than said maximum diameter.

3. A urinal as set forth in claim 1, in which said spout is oflongitudinally corrugated cross-section throughout.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS241,863 Hopkins May 24, 1881 805,312 Meinecke Nov. 21, 1905 1,386,696Fishback Aug. 9, 1921 1,727,199 Freitag Sept. 3, 1929 41,951,871 .yvJudah Mar. 20, 1934 i l FOREIGN PATENTS 814,59() France Mar. 22, 1937

